I fell for a Scam-Learn from my Mistake

15 years ago

Back in February I had a cellphone bill from Verizon I coundn't pay, about $2300. So I just stopped paying it. I got several letters and phone calls from Verizon. One day "someone" allegedly from Verizon called and said they would take a partial payment of $1680 over the phone, close my account and consider me all paid up, no longer delinquent. I gave her my bank account numbers and on March 1 the money came out of my account. The phone calls and letters have completely stopped. Then a few days I went to Annual Credit Report dot com (the only legal free service) and got my credit report. There on the top , listed as a bad debt, is that $2300 from Verizon. It's listed as "past-due-in collections". And my $1680 is gone!!! I was the DUMMY who gave bank information on the phone. Don't fall for this like I did!!!

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Comments (10)

dreamgarden
15 years ago
Yikes! That is a huge phone bill.

Who did you send the check to? Who cashed it? Contact the Attorney general of the state that it was cashed in and see if they can help.

FYI. Whenever you get a phone call (or email) from someone who says they are from a company you do business with, do not give them any information. Instead, tell them you will call them back and then look up the number in your records and make sure they are who they say they are.
chisue
15 years ago
Who, other than Verizon, KNEW you owed them $2300? Have you talked to Verizon? Could be the credit report is not up to date.
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Billl
15 years ago
You should check with Verizon, but this seems pretty "normal" as far a debt collection goes. Most big companies have debt collection divisions - often set up as a separate company owned by the larger parent company. The "two" companies usually don't communicate well.

My guess would be that the person who called you really was working for verizon since the call came so quickly. If it was a true 3rd party collection agency, it usually takes 60-90 days instead of the short period you described. You need to get back in contact with verizon.

Unfortunately, your money probably went to a bunch of junk fees that they tacked on to your account once you stopped paying. Unless you have it in writing that your payment was for settlement of the account, they can apply the money to fees, interest etc and your balance may not actually decrease.

There is an outside chance that they weren't trying to take advantage of you and just never updated their reporting on you. You should be able to tell pretty quickly when you call them.
raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
15 years ago
And, as always, ***get it in writing*** both the offer and the confirmation that the debt is settled.
sushipup1
15 years ago
Will you share with us HOW you got a cell phone bill that large? Perhaps there was an error?
vala55
15 years ago
Trust is a strange thing. When I meet a new person I trust them even if I have heard the person can't be trusted. I make my own judgements about the person. BUT, when it comes to money, I don't trust anyone with my money, no one. I don't even give my house key to a family member. I heard a criminal on TV say anyone can be conned, well, he hadn't met me. LOL
jannie
Original Author
15 years ago
Guess what happened-I called Verizon today and they did indeed accept my "settlement" back in March. They are going to send me a letter as proof. So kind. It just didn't get to the credit bureaus yet. So I will be able to get this "blot" off my credit report. They say it's good to check once a year and you can (by US law) get a free copy once a year. The internet address is Annualcreditreport dot com. sorry I don't know how to post a link.
chisue
15 years ago
Ah, good. I thought as much.
User
15 years ago
Sorry Jannie but in a "settlement" you only paid part of your bill. This debt ("blot") will be on your credit report for at least 7 years.
Billl
15 years ago
Not necessarily true. It is completely up to the company how they report it. That is why you need to get it in writing that they will report the debt as paid.

I fell for a Scam-Learn from my Mistake

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I fell for a Scam-Learn from my Mistake

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